How do I Make a Scoby without Prior Kombucha

[inchrisin]

Hi all,

I'm an average beer brewer and I want to try my hand at kombucha. I don't want to buy a scoby or kombucha to make my batch. I'd like to just culture my own bacteria and yeast for this project, if possible. Has anyone done this successfully?

I'm assuming that the majority of the bacteria is lacto and that I could culture this from apple juice. Any thoughts on adding extra yeast, or will I just try to pick up the right strains from the apple juice as well?

Thanks for the input.

I think that a big part of wanting to do all of this myself stems from not knowing where to buy kombucha and not wanting to spend any extra money on a premade scoby.

 

[hunter_le five]

From what I've read, lacto can sometimes be found in Kombucha, but the predominate bacterias are generally varieties of acetobacter.

To be honest, buying a bottle of unflavored unpasteurized commercial kombucha is the most practical way to go, as it will already contain a variety of yeast and bacteria strains needed for a healthy KT fermentation, and will only cost a few bucks. Buying a SCOBY is entirely unnecessary.

 

[skadalajara]

That being said, a member who lives in another country was unable to source kt or a scoby, so he cultured his own. I can't remember his name, but a search should yield the thread. It was somewhat recent.

 

[stpug]

From what I've seen, most kombucha cultures contain acetobacters, dekkeras (Brett yeasts), and occasionally others. Lactobacilli are not that common in kombucha.

High Country kombucha is a great source for starting your own culture from, and can generally be found for <$3 per bottle. Drink 3/4 of the bottle and pour the rest plus the sediment into a small batch (2 cup batch) and let ferment on your counter for a few weeks until a good scoby/pellicle has formed. Then add another 2 cups sweet tea and let ferment again until a new scoby has formed (this time it will take much less time - 3-7 days maybe). Then double-up again and this will form your first drinking batch.

 

[Adam_Trainor101]

Heres the thread where someone made their own Scoby. https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=527968

 

[darksnail]

it is not so hard to make from my experience
did u figured it out ?

 

[inchrisin]

From what I've seen, most kombucha cultures contain acetobacters, dekkeras (Brett yeasts), and occasionally others. Lactobacilli are not that common in kombucha.

High Country kombucha is a great source for starting your own culture from, and can generally be found for <$3 per bottle. Drink 3/4 of the bottle and pour the rest plus the sediment into a small batch (2 cup batch) and let ferment on your counter for a few weeks until a good scoby/pellicle has formed. Then add another 2 cups sweet tea and let ferment again until a new scoby has formed (this time it will take much less time - 3-7 days maybe). Then double-up again and this will form your first drinking batch.

That's funny because I figured that lacto would be the predominate strain here. It's in the air EVERYWHERE. I'm glad to know that it's mostly vinegar strains and some bret. I bought a couple of bottles of kombucha and I'll try to culture the SCOBYs.

 

[stpug]

That's funny because I figured that lacto would be the predominate strain here. It's in the air EVERYWHERE. I'm glad to know that it's mostly vinegar strains and some bret. I bought a couple of bottles of kombucha and I'll try to culture the SCOBYs.

I should clarify: I should have said that they are not the prevalent microbe in KT, but as you said I'm sure they are present because they are everywhere. Sorry about that.